Japanese swimmer Rikako Ikee qualified for the Tokyo Olympics on Sunday, where she will compete in the 4x100m medley relay, two years after she was diagnosed with leukemia.
The 20-year-old swimmer got her ticket thanks to her victory in the 100m butterfly final of the Japanese Championships (57’77), insufficient time to qualify as an individual but good enough to allow her to enter the relay 4x100m medley.
In February 2019, after experiencing symptoms at a training camp in Australia, she rushed back to Japan where she was diagnosed with leukemia.
Ikee was released from hospital in December 2019, after ten months of treatment.
“A year ago, I swore I wouldn’t lose this fight against myself. Thanks to my family and friends and all those who supported me, I managed to win ”, she said in May 2020 in a video message recorded after her return to training in the pools.
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During the Asian Games held in 2018 in Indonesia, the Tokyo native became the first sportswoman to win six gold medals in a single edition, and also won two silver medals.
Her performances then made her a star in Japan as well as a very serious hope for a medal at the Tokyo Olympics, postponed for a year due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
On May 15, 2020, Thomas Bach sent him a message on Twitter: “Keep dreaming, Rikako Ikee. The whole Olympic family is behind you ”.
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In 2016, at the Rio Olympics, the Japanese finished sixth in the 100m butterfly final and was eliminated in the 200m freestyle heats.
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